Found 51 talks archived in Planetary systems

Abstract

Planetary transits have proven to be one of the most efficient means of finding planets outside the Solar system, counting over 2500 exoplanet discoveries. These transiting planets are paramount for the study of exoplanet atmospheres as the stellar light is filtered through the planetary atmosphere during transit and planetary absorption signatures become imprinted on the stellar spectrum. Observations of hot-Jupiter transmission spectra have become increasingly numerous and reliable throughout recent years, allowing detailed constrains on the planet's physical and chemical atmospheric properties, interactions between planet and host star, and planet formation history. While early work relied largely on space-based facilities, ground-based techniques have seen major advances recently and have become instrumental in performing an extensive and comparative study of exoplanet atmospheres. I will review the current state of knowledge, summarize recent results and discuss future prospects of exoplanet characterization, with a focus on the potential of ground-based facilities. In particular, I will present recent and new results by our team on the transmission spectra of hot Jupiters.

Abstract

With more than 3000 detected exoplanets it is now clear that planet formation is a natural outcome of stellar formation. However, the mechanisms by which planets do form remain uncertain. The most promising way to understand this process is to study protoplanetary disks that show signposts of planet formation: the so-called transitional disks. In this talk I will first introduce the observational techniques and instruments that are revolutionizing this field I will finish presenting ALMA and SPHERE/VLT observations of transitional disks around low-mass stars that, according to our current understanding, show evidences of planet-disk interactions.

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While there may be some possibilities of detecting biological signatures (“biomarkers”) outside the Solar System from the ground, most authoritiesbelieve that major installations in space are required to do so.In this talk we present the background, a brief summary of possible biomarkers, of possible targets and of the ways and means to observe them.

Abstract

In my presentation I will give a short introduction to the science of extrasolar planets, in particular the technique of transit, eclipse and phasecurve spectro-photometry. I will describe my various projects in this emerging field using state of the art spectroscopic and photometric instruments on the largest ground based telescopes, the 'flying telescope' SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) and the Kepler and Hubble space telescopes.

Abstract

Time is one of the least explored dimensions of exoplanet research; most stars targeted by large surveys are middle-aged by necessity or statistics. Yet the first few hundred million years of a planetary system are probably the most formative and include accretion, migration, and escape of atmospheres. While the Kepler prime field included a small number of young stars by chance, the K2 mission is deliberately selecting some target stars by age, and previews the potential of TESS and PLATO. The Zodical Exoplanets in Time (ZEIT) project studies K2 systems in stellar clusters of established ages. Transiting planets as small as Earth-size have been detected in the Upper Scorpius, Pleiades, Hyades, and Praesepe clusters. Mysterious aperiodic signals related to circumstellar disks were found in Upper Scorpius, these may be related to planet formation. We are also investigating planets around evolved stars and report a Jupiter-mass planet inflated by irradiation from its host star. Gaia distances, proper motions, and spectra can identify large numbers of young stars for observation by the TESS and PLATO missions, enabling robust comparisons across a range of ages to understand evolutionary trends, and select propitious targets for follow-up by ELTs and space observatories such as JWST.

Abstract

As of today, we know now more than 3000 planets orbiting other stars. The detection of planets through radial velocity gathers special attention in the world of exoplanet characterization, as this technique will probably allow us to detect and characterize the first Earth-mass planet inside the habitable zone of a neighbouring star. In this talk I will discuss the ongoing efforts for developing state-of-the art spectrographs that permit the detection of an Earth twin, and discuss one of the most formidable obstacles to the detection of planetary signals: stellar activity. While for several years planetary surveys simply avoided active stars, today we know that the presence of extrasolar planets around a star might suppress stellar activity as we measure it, or even boost it. I will present the current view of the intricate relationship between exoplanets and activity, and discuss some of the latest works on the topic.

In this second lecture, Dr. Stansberry focus in the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The speaker gives a detailed description of the characteristis and capabilities of the telescope, as well as the science case for the observations of Solar System objects using the JWST.

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This is the first lecture of Dr. Crida, where he gives a historic overview on the improvement of our knowledge on the planets and satellites. He also provides some basic concepts related to celestial mechanics in order to properly follow the rest of his lectures.

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In this second talk, Dr. Küppers gives an overview of the Rosetta mission, from its launch in 2004 until the end of the mission, in September 2016, only a month before the celebration of this Winter School. The talk includes information on the instruments on-board the spacecraft, the two fly-byes to asteroids Steins and Lutetia, and the results obtained from the observations of comet 67P/C-G.